YOGA THERAPY
FOR ADOPTED CHILDREN, THEIR PARENTS AND FAMILIES
Yoga Therapy
FOR ADOPTED CHILDREN, THEIR PARENTS AND FAMILIES
Every child is unique and so is every adoption and the circumstances that surround it. I specialise in Yoga Therapy for adopted children and teens, their parents, and families.
As a two-time adopter myself, I am acutely aware of the challenges that these children and teens face and the journey that adoptive parents have been on.
Discover more about how Yoga Therapy can support you and your child.
Yoga for Adopted Children and Teens
Yoga Therapy sessions lead to increased emotional wellbeing and resilience. Sessions give children the chance to explore and understand how they are feeling through connecting with their body. This mindful approach brings children greater confidence, autonomy and empowerment and the ability and tools to communicate their needs in a relaxed and mindful way, all of which lead to improved relationships, behavior, and social interaction.
Creating a safe space, I offer trauma-informed Yoga Therapy sessions to support adopted children and teenagers with the many challenges that they face. I work specifically with children and teens who experience developmental trauma, attachment issues, foetal alcohol syndrome, neurodiversity, and sensory challenges. Yoga Therapy sessions can help adopted children and teens to process trauma and develop tools to cope with anxiety, and difficult emotions such as feelings of unworthiness and the constant need for reassurance.
Schools can use Pupil Premium Plus and EHCP Funding for Yoga Therapy
“Rebekah’s calm and friendly manner helped my son to feel comfortable and safe, which supported him to engage in the sessions. My son’s experience of Yoga Therapy has given him tools to self-regulate and confidence to speak up and share how he is feeling”.
For more detailed information about how I work with children and teenagers please continue reading.
Yoga Therapy aims to serve the holistic wellbeing of each child through a child centered therapeutic Yoga practice. The benefits of these practices are far reaching and can positively impact every area of a child’s life, including physical and mental wellbeing enabling them to live healthier and more fulfilled lives.
Specific benefits of Yoga Therapy for Adopted Children include:
- Reduced stress and anxiety
- Emotional regulation and increased resilience
- Develops the ability to self-regulate and manage transitions
- Enhanced sense of wellbeing and self-esteem
- Establishes a calm, organised mental state
- Develops physical strength, muscle tone, flexibility, and balance
- Creates focus and develops concentration
To book 1-1 and group Yoga Therapy sessions for children and teenagers, please get in touch to discuss your requirements.
What happens before a session?
Before I begin Yoga Therapy sessions with a child I will meet with the school and/ or parent. In this initial session we will discuss why the child has been referred for Yoga Therapy and how it is hoped that the sessions will support them. During this session I will also need to complete an intake form for the child which includes any medical conditions I may need to be aware of and any mental health challenges that the child is experiencing.
I will do a similar, but briefer intake with the child during the first few sessions we have together to get to know them better in their own words. Please refer to the consent and agreement form for information regarding confidentiality and systemic practice.
What happens during a yoga therapy session?
During the Yoga Therapy session, I meet a child where they are both physically and emotionally and we go from there, because of this each session will be different. Sessions will vary hugely depending on the intention for the Yoga Therapy sessions and the age, needs and personality of a child. During sessions I will draw from a huge treasure chest of techniques, these include movement work, both embodied exploration and traditional Yoga postures, breathing techniques, mindfulness practices and relaxation experiences and techniques. The use of sound, music, art and self-massage and reflexology techniques may also be used.
I work with 2 key approaches and often both are used within sessions.
Approach one uses the therapeutic intervention of traditional yoga techniques. For example, I select, or we devise together (depending on age and ability of child) a yoga practice that will support the child with a specific intention and focus. For a child who is experiencing anxiety this could be postures and breathing techniques to aid relaxation and lessen anxiety
Approach two uses an embodied, somatic approach. I support a child to explore and trust their own intuition on how they want to move their bodies using embodied dialogue. This approach can lead to profound and important insights and is especially appropriate for working with older teenagers and those children who are open to a deeper therapeutic process.
Sessions always follow an approach that will best serve the child ensuring they feel safe and relaxed. A Yoga Therapy session ends with a chance for integration, this may be experientially through relaxation or verbally through reflective dialogue.
“After each Yoga Therapy session, I noticed that my daughter came home calmer and more able to talk about her day and what she was feeling. This seemed to carry on into the days ahead and massively helped with family dynamics”
“Rebekah has a natural ability to connect and communicate with children and teens creating a relaxed and safe environment”.
Adoptive Parents
As adoptive parents we have to be both resilient and reflective so that we can parent our special children therapeutically with unconditional love and care. These unique Yoga Therapy sessions give you a space to release emotions that get stuck in the body and create a space for you to gain insight into whatever challenges you are facing.
Sessions also focus upon soothing the nervous system bringing balance and restoring energy for the path ahead. Whether it is to process adoption related challenges or support yourself with an unrelated wellbeing challenge I am able to support you.
As an adoptive parent myself I have a unique understanding of the journey that you have undertaken to become a parent. I welcome you to a space where you can share and talk about your experiences in a body connected way or simply just come to be.
I am here to support you with understadning and unconditional positive regard.
Continue reading to find out more about what happens in a Yoga Therapy session.
“Your wonderfully gentle and explorative approach makes my needs feel met and heard and nourishes my soul. I felt connected with myself in a way that allowed me to be more forgiving of myself, and in turn has allowed me to be more compassionate with my children despite daily challenges”.
I offer a free 15-minute zoom or phone call for us to get to know each other before you commit to a series of sessions.
BOOK FREE 15 MINUTE DISCOVERY CALL
More about Yoga Therapy
Yoga Therapy is a therapeutic process which draws upon the vast treasures of Yoga to support you towards improved health and wellbeing. You do not need to have any prior experience of Yoga to come to a Yoga Therapy session as I am able to meet you where you are and will create a safe and non-judgmental environment where we can explore together in an enquiring way.
Yoga Therapy can help to support you with a myriad of symptoms and conditions through the application of specific Yoga techniques. These can help to bring relief to physical and neurological symptoms, relieve stress, support positive mental health, and create an opportunity for greater wellbeing. Research shows that Yoga Therapy affects the nervous system directly, supporting self-regulation and resilience allowing us to cope more mindfully with the challenges our lives bring.
“Yoga therapy is the process of empowering individuals to progress toward improved health and well-being through the application of the teachings and practices of Yoga.”
What will happen in a session?
We start with your intention and from here we co-create your session, connecting to your own somatic insight, an innate sense of embodied knowing. There are times when I may suggest and lead practices which will be useful for you and other times where I will support you to explore organic embodied movement.
Through this somatic, body felt experience you will be able to draw upon and process both conscious and unconscious patterns of being which affect your wellbeing. Sessions can include any of the vast array of offerings we have from the tradition of yoga, we can incorporate postures, breath work, relaxation, meditation, and elements of yoga philosophy to name a few. What we utilise will depend solely upon your intention, and so sessions may also include techniques from other therapeutic modalities and incorporate elements from both physical therapy and psychotherapy, such as tapping and shaking, somatic movement and mindfulness practices.
Our treasure chest is vast and abundant. Sessions will conclude with time for you to integrate your experience and find practical and meaningful ways to bring this new knowledge and experience to your daily life.
Sessions take place at a beautiful Yoga space near Frome or in the comfort of your home or online if this feels most appropriate for you.
Yoga Therapy sessions are booked as a minimum block of 3 sessions. I offer a free 15-minute zoom or phone call for us to get to know each other before you commit to a series of sessions.
Testimonials from previous Yoga Therapy Clients
I felt truly heard. Rebekah spoke when I could not, but needed her to. She gave me the time and space between for me to think. There was no rushing. It just felt nurturing and right. I felt totally comfortable opening up with Rebekah.
Testimonials from previous Yoga Therapy Clients
I find Rebekah to be very intuitive and a great listener, she always reflects back really clearly and also reads between the lines to dig a little deeper
Yoga Therapy for Adoptive Families
Therapeutic Family Yoga sessions offer an inspiring space where families can come together to connect and have fun. These sessions specifically focus on creating healthy and long-lasting attachments. Sessions with younger children use partner yoga and games to bring connection and allow space for quiet relaxation together.
Sessions with older children and teenagers may also involve partner Yoga and games but will also focus on specific themes depending on your intention, such as trust, communication, respect, and boundaries.
As a Yoga Therapist I am equipped to facilitate sessions where complex adoption related issues may arise. In these situations, I use an integrative relational approach to support families to come to a place of compassionate understanding of each other’s needs and experiences.
“Family yoga with Becky has been a very treasured part of our lives. Each session is a unique and heart-opening experience for all our family. We love the mixture of playfulness, creativity, connection and peacefulness. Rebekah is such an insightful, warm & generous therapist”
“I didn’t know what to expect from our family yoga session, but I was amazed that halfway through I noticed that my son was having fun, I was feeling the benefits of doing some yoga, and we were connecting. With games and partner yoga we were free to be ourselves and Rebekah was in tune with all our needs”.
Here are some of the benefits family yoga can bring:
- Improved communication between family members
- Becoming more aware of each other’s needs.
- A strengthening of family bonds and attachment
- Improved behavior in the children and the adults, due to the calming effects of Yoga.
- Connecting and having fun!
I offer a free 15-minute zoom or phone call for us to get to know each other before you commit to a series of sessions.
Click here for further client information and details regarding confidentiality
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